Body camera video (embedded below) shows a mother and domestic violence victim in Alabama being arrested for saying, “Fuck The Police,” even though it is a legal exercise of free speech that is protected under the First Amendment.

The video submitted for this post is fairly self explanatory and even predictable: two cops from a tiny Alabama town show up presumably to mediate a dispute over childcare issues between a husband and wife. One of the cops begins to feel his authoritah isn’t being properly respected, so he decides to escalate the situation into a confrontation. The mother, who also says she is a domestic violence victim, gets frustrated and decides to legally exercise her freedom of speech by yelling “Fuck The Police.” Cpl. Youngblood responds by making an unlawful arrest based on speech that clearly (and according to the Supreme Court) is protected by the First Amendment.

Beyond that singular incident, Nicole, who submitted the post, details the many abusive acts she says her husband has carried out against her and her children. She also discusses the numerous ways in which he has used his influence with the police, courts, and CPS workers to cover up those abuses and further victimize her.

Hello,

I’m in need of help. When this video (embedded below) took place, I was devastated. The police took no actions. Then my 17 yr. old son was handcuffed and beaten by the police of Millbrook, Alabama while non combative for being a hot head. One officer involved in the act spoke up and told what happened. I was incarcerated at the time and watched as four officers beat my son.

After that horrific incident, my son and I were subjected to judicial abuse. This was so bad that, when my son’s charges were dropped, the juvenile judge made threats to our lives. All of this stems from domestic violence within our living situation, for which I was denied help in Alabama by police countless times. Also the nearest local domestic violence center is “Family Sunshine Center” in Montgomery, Alabama. So, I was forced to stay and deal with it, as the Millbrook police suggested after arriving at my home previously.

I took my arrest to trial, however, because I was making the case a Black Lives Matter issue, the lawyer I paid refused to represent me in court, quitting with only two days remaining before court. So, I was forced to represent myself at trail with no jury, in which I lost when I told the judge he misunderstood the facts. After spending six months on bail bond hold, I could not escape the escalating abuse.

Horrible, unspeakable things were escalating and the children and I were falling into despair. I was isolated and didnot have a way out. So, I continued to deal with it until my husband came home angry and drew back his fist to hurt our three year old.

I cried out, “Don’t you hit her!” Instead of a punch to the belly, he violently threw her four feet across the room. I rushed to her. Thankfully, she was unharmed and had landed in a U shape on her bum. This was a blessing of the fact she could do cartwheels from age two and now, at age four, has mastered a one handed cartwheel, as well as other flips and jumps. If not for her god given talents, she would have ended up in serious condition.

Afraid to call the Millbrook police, for good reason, I called the Montgomery police, who advised me to call the state troopers. Once I had called the state troopers, I was nicely told by the officer that I was crazy and that the Millbrook police are not out to get me. That they will help you. Cpl. Youngblood, who is the policeman seen arresting me in the video, answered the phone.

I said, “No thank you, I do not need help.” The state trooper then asked if Youngblood would be coming out. He replied, “No, I will send some others. I replied, “Still, no thank you.” After several hours had passed, there was a knock on the door. It was the Millbrook police. I looked out the window and said, “No thank you, go away.”

Instead, they broke into my front door. I screamed and ran, asking them to leave. They refused to go and did not say even one word the whole time. Confused, I tried to calm myself down and speak to the officers. So I sat in the living room on a wing-backed chair. One of the officers moved so close to me that the ring on his belt hung in my face. He also wore a very menacing look on his face.

Then, I turned my face towards the door, scared of what they were going to do to me. I saw Cpl. Youngblood walking into the door and I became even more afraid. At this time, I saw my cell phone sitting nearby and picked it up to record their actions. The close officer backed off a bit and they all stood silently with their hands folded as I cried and begged Cpl. Youngblood to leave. (I still have that video.)

After that was over, I knew I needed to get out of there before one of us ended a life. So I called my local home town news station, who gave me the number of the domestic violence shelter. So I called and spoke to a wonderful counselor, who got busy to help me stay alive.

She advised me to call the local child protective services, so I did. She also advised me to tell the truth, so I did. John Holmes, who answered the call, listened to my plea for help. Then he advised me that he would not be coming out to make a report and that I would be held responsible for any abuse found, also.

Devastated that my family was once again in grave danger, I again turned to the Willow Domestic Violence Center in New York. The counselor was shocked at the news of what had happened, but she also had bad news for me again. There was no D.V. shelter for me to go to and they refused to help me escape with five kids.

My husband had returned with the police and gotten the car keys. So I could not leave, being in a very country place. There was no way out and he could kill us at any time. No one would help. The Willow Domestic Violence Shelter counselor said that I must get a police report, at least.

Together, we called the police, the mayor, and a host of other city officials in Millbrook, Alabama. Finally, they sent officers out to take the report without Youngblood. However, when they came to do the report, the male officer put words in my mouth. Afraid to dispute it, I held my tongue. I also have video of this event.

Once I had confirmation that the report was written, the captain of the police department stated that that was all they would do for me and that no investigation or arrest would be made. I was then advised by the New York domestic violence shelter that they could not find any help in the state of Alabama for my family.

If I had a way to get to my hometown of N.Y., they said they could help. With nowhere to go and our lives in danger, my oldest son called a friend. We made plans for him to come back in the AM to make two trips to Montgomery, Alabama to board a Greyhound to New York and that is what we did. There was a rainbow on the day that we left.

Confused, sad, and bewildered with five kids and only 600 dollars, I went to a DV shelter. He went to court and filed for a divorce. I was never made aware of this and he won by default all things and custody of our children. He came to their school in NY and removed them. When the domestic violence shelter found out, moves were made to protect the children. Also, a Child Protective Services investigation was done and he was indicted on all claims.

Court procedures to protect the children were started in New York. The children were assigned a legal guardian, who also agreed that there had been neglect and abuse by their father. I thought we were safe, but due to UCJA laws, the case was moved back to Alabama with safety precautions for the children to return. The children were given a legal guardian and I was to contact her and also the local Child Protective Services, so I did.

When speaking to the legal guardian, she informed me that she was only put on the case to satisfy the court in NY. Also, she said that she had been told by Judge Sibley Reynolds to go speak to my husband and to make a written statement, which she had already written. I then called Child Protective Services, as ordered, and they proceeded to tell me that they have not gotten the judges orders and will not open the case to investigate that Steuben, NY had already investigated. In addition, they said it is up to the Millbrook police to file criminal charges and they will in no way protect our children.

So, afraid of what was going on, I called the Millbrook police and spoke to Capt. Fields, who told me he was not going to protect me or the kids. He also made a remark that he knows exactly who I am; I’m the woman who doesn’t know how to talk to police. He then proceeded to tell me that I can’t make him do it and NY can’t make him do it. I found out later that the New York police and CPS made a request for prosecution that was also denied by the Millbrook police.

Terrified, with no lawyer to take my case, I called Elmore County court and asked about my case. I was informed that there was not a new case of custody modifications in front of a special master as my court documents said. However, some movement was made on a contempt of court charge in the original default divorce. Knowing now that I was not safe to return, I started to read all the divorce documents.

I noticed my maiden name is wrong, the marriage date is wrong, and I found out that the divorce is not fully dissolved due to us being married in India under the Hindu Marriage Act and because I was not present for any of the divorce proceedings. I can have the case heard in a fair forum. I noticed in court that they use having ties to India against me and put a hold on my passport blocking me from help and assets.

I am in hiding, in fear for my life, afraid of being hurt by police or my abusive husband. Several domestic violence shelters, CPS workers, police, and judges in Steuben County have tried to protect my children and I. They can do nothing more than to personally tell me to hide.

The officials in Alabama won’t listen. He has, with the help of an Alabama court had the two indications of abuse sealed and expunged leaving me having to hide in fear, in order to protect myself and my children. I have looked high and low for help. I have proof of all this. Does anyone out there have any ideas? (This account is really just the basic story lines.)

Last Month, police officers from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department arrested a local activist named Jason Nellis, who has also contributed several posts to the CopBlock Network. In doing so, they used the excuse that he had jaywalked as they were arresting a wheelchair-bound woman on Fremont Street in Downtown Las Vegas.

However, in the body camera video released by his lawyer, Stephen Stubbs, it’s very clear that they actually arrested him because they didn’t like that he was singing NWA’s song,”Fuck Tha Police” along with some street performers who were across the street, well away from the police. This is, of course, very much covered by the free speech protections within the First Amendment to the US Constitution and has been ruled as such many times.

As is common in downtown Las Vegas, they used jaywalking as an excuse to arrest him. Even that very shallow and see through aspect of the arrest is entirely invalid, though. In fact, the video shows that the police were blocking the crosswalk which made it impossible to cross the street without either “jaywalking” or actually interfering with the police that were arresting the disabled woman. The reality is that, as they themselves stated quite plainly in the video, the jaywalking charge was nothing more than a convenient excuse to illegally arrest a person they consider an “agitator” and “clear out downtown.” (They have even used that excuse to detain me once, which makes this the third time cops in Downtown Las Vegas have been featured for that same bogus reason on the Cop Block Network.)

What people see is what they remember and what actually defines you. And when police are willing to laugh and boast about it on camera everyone knows it’s not just a Few Bad Apples involved.

Take Action:

Jason Nellis will be in court for a hearing to present evidence that this illegal arrest violated his First Amendment rights this morning, October 27th at 9:30am PST/12:30pm EST. The hearing will take place in Judge Kerns courtroom located on the sixth floor of the Regoinal (In)Justice Center. If you’re in Las Vegas you should attend that hearing as a visible show of support for Jason and, as well as to send a message that Las Vegas residents are tired of the constant misconduct and abuses by the LVMPD. You can find additional information about the hearing on this Facebook event page that has been set up.

If for some reason you can’t attend or you’re not in Las Vegas, you can also contact the LVMPD and let them know you are paying attention and that you don’t appreciate the police in Las Vegas arbitrarily violating citizens’ Constitutional rights. I’m sure the Las Vegas Tourism Board might also like to know what sort of impression the officers working for the LVMPD are giving to people outside the city and what impact that is having on whether you visit Vegas.

According to Jeremy, the Noblesville Police Department is much more interested in finding out who sent a previous submission exposing the drinking problems of one of their Lieutenants than they are in addressing the fact that a high ranking officer in their department has such severe a drinking problem.

Poor, poor Lieutenant Trump of the Noblesville Police Department is suffering from a severely chapped ass because of the Copblock post exposing her drunken adventures. Since she experienced her 15 minutes of social media fame, Lt. Trump has sworn vengeance on all of those responsible for bringing her binge drinking endeavors to the public’s eye.

In between coating Lt. Trump’s burned bottom with ointment, Noblesville detectives have been working feverishly to find the source of this post. Rather than focusing their attention on their officer’s obvious problem with booze, the department has initiated an “official” police investigation.

In Hamilton County, Indiana, law enforcement officers aren’t trained on the state’s law and the U.S. Constitution. Rather, they are taught how to get around those rights, how to violate them and get away with it. In Hamilton County, when an officer see’s his or her name in/on a Copblock post, it’s grounds for the issuance of subpoenas for IP addresses, Facebook accounts and probable cause for search warrants so that these patriots can be brought to justice! You know what they say; “If you can’t do the time, don’t do the time.

Lt. Trump seems to think that her embarrassment over a submission exposing her misconduct and obvious issues with alcohol, “Trumps” that of a concerned citizen’s right to free speech. So fellow Copblocker’s beware; In Hamilton Co., IN., if you expose police corruption or utilize your First Amendment rights, your personal accounts could be compromised by these thugs with badges and you could be charged criminally for hurting a police officer’s feelings.

The following post was shared with the CopBlock Network anonymously, via the CopBlock.org Submissions Page. It details an incident where G Philip Rossman,an officer from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, decided to publicly post a photo of a citizen’s car, inviting harassment of that citizen based on a bumper sticker he didn’t like within the post.

Subsequently, Sgt. Matt Morgan, Officer Madeline Lathamer, and Officer Mike Wilson, who all also work for the IMPD, gladly accepted that invitation and began bullying the owner of that vehicle. That bullying included posting information illegally obtained, via an inappropriate police background search.

BTW, Officer Wilson a former “officer of the year” hasn’t limited his bullying to the internets. He recently received quite a bit of attention for an incident in September in which he was caught on video assaulting and then wrongfully arresting a man at an Indianapolis hotel. Of course, that’s the bigger issue when it’s a group of Heroes cyber-bullying people. More so than anyone, they have the ability to take those threats beyond the internets and out into the real world.

(Note: If you ever have an issue involving inappropriate, threatening, and/or harassing conduct by police employees be sure to take screenshots of the posts so they don’t get deleted and be sure to send those screenshots in with your submission. We are more than happy to expose bullies for what they truly are.)

On June 3rd, 2016, G Phillip Rossman (aka – G Phil Corvette on FB) of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department violated his IDACS user agreement. He also committed a federal violation by posting confidential information, more specifically, a taxpayer’s name and personal information in a very public online post on Facebook. This information was ran through NCIC and posted online by a number of additional officers.

The incident began when Officer G Phillip Rossman took a photo of this subject’s vehicle, their license plate, and the bumper stickers displayed on the rear bumper. He took this photo while stopped at a red light at the intersection at Sheek Road and Main Street in Greenwood, Indiana. Officer Rossman (who at the time of the photograph was in his personal vehicle) then chose to post this picture to his online Facebook account under the name of G Phil Corvette.

He posted this photo to where any member of the public could view and have access to it. In his post, Officer Rossman comments and encourages other officers to specifically target this tax payer’s vehicle, as well as the individual driving it. In the photo the subjects license plate was clearly visible and once again, this post was made public for anyone to see and have access to.

Along with this post, there were additional inappropriate and slanderous comments made by several IMPD officers. Those officers include Mike “Marine” Wilson and Madeline Diaz Lathamer.

Officer Mike Wilson not only makes inappropriate and unprofessional comments, but he also publicly posts extremely slanderous and defaming comments against the subject, as well. He wrote in a public post identifying information on the driver, even posting personal identifying information for others to share publicly. Officer Wilson’s public posts have since been deleted by him, but sensitive personal information was visible to all.

This is extremely inappropriate and even unlawful behavior. It reflects poorly on the department as a whole when officers engage in such misconduct and abuse of power. Officer Mike Wilson has violated not only his IDACS user agreement, but has committed a federal violation by posting confidential NCIC information online for the public to see. (see sections 6.3/6.4.3 IDACS user agreement and title 28 in regards to NCIC) He has also committed slander and defamation of character on the driver of the vehicle in which Officer Rossman profiled and targeted.

IMPD officer Madeline Diaz Lathamer also made inappropriate comments in this public post. More specifically she wrote “Oh the fun that could be had without one.” The driver of the vehicle targeted was found to be a law-abiding citizen and a retired police officer who displayed bumper stickers that spoke out against government and police corruption. What was displayed on the vehicle was protected by the First Amendment. The vehicle targeted is deemed “personal property” and it is owned by the driver. What the owner of this vehicle chooses to put on their vehicle and what they choose to display is their right as a taxpayer and a US citizen.

Officers Rossman, Wilson, and Lathamer failed to realize that targeting and profiling specifically based upon something that is displayed and that is covered under the First Amendment is highly illegal. As an American, we have the right to express our feelings and concerns towards government corruption and even assemble in peaceful demonstration if we choose to. No one should be targeted by any police officer because of that. And it most certainly does not give any officer the right to post personal identifying information publicly.

Also involved in this incident was supervisor Matt Morgan of IMPD. As a supervisor, Sgt. Morgan has a responsibility to report issues of misconduct involving another officer. Rather than performing this specific duty, he chose to contribute to the online posts. Upon receiving a word that the owner of the vehicle had intentions of filing a formal complaint to IMPD internal affairs, Sergeant Morgan deleted his online comments. Screenshots of his comments were obtained prior to this deletion. Sergeant Morgan through his own words, “prides himself on getting people stirred up on here.” This is not how a supervisor should present himself to other officers or members of the public.

Sergeant Morgan is a representative of IMPD both on and off duty and he knew that the photograph posted by Officer Rossman was inappropriate. He was also aware of the fact that police resources and law enforcement programs were misused in order to run the license plate in the photo. Yet, rather than reporting this type of behavior and misconduct, he chose to condone and be part of it by contributing in the comment section. Sgt. Morgan has neglected his duties as a supervisor and should be held accountable for his actions and misconduct.

Since this inappropriate post has been made by Officer Rosman, the driver/owner of this vehicle has not only received hateful text messages from former coworkers, but family members have also received hateful and threatening messages on their Facebook accounts. These threatening messages sent to family members have expressed that “when you mess with this family, meaning “the police family”, you mess with all of them.” The owner/driver’s mother was also told in an online message that she needs to “watch her back.” Another message said that they “hoped their mother was a good driver.”

There is absolutely no excuse for this. Note that the owner/driver’s mother is an elderly woman, she enjoys her time on social media and Facebook. It is a way for her to communicate with her former classmates, as well as family members. Officer Rossman clearly doesn’t understand the Constitution and that officers can and will be held civilly liable when these rights are violated.

Officer Rossman has placed himself, other officers, and his department; the IMPD in a position of civil liability. This is a matter where disciplinary action absolutely needs to be taken. What Rossman and Wilson and the number of additional officers who unlawfully ran this information have done falls along the lines of conduct unbecoming of an officer, misuse of equipment, and official misconduct.

An investigation into the violations of NCIC and IDACS was requested. On June 8, 2016, the Indiana State police IDACS division was contacted. Consequently, the Indiana State police initiated an audit of the driver’s license plate. The audit will determine which and how many officers have unlawfully run the victim’s plate based upon the photograph that was posted by Rossman online. In regards to exposing this type of misconduct and corruption, Officer Rossman’s victim has also considered contacting media, as well. It is this type of misconduct, inappropriate behavior, and abuse of power that the public needs to be made aware of.

What these officers have done and this type of profiling is yet another reason why the the public does not trust their law-enforcement officers. This will be addressed accordingly and for those who abused their law enforcement powers by running this confidential information and posting it for the public to see online, other complaints and civil litigation will come from this. The Indiana State Police, IDACS/NCIC, and IMPD internal affairs have all been notified and all comments posted have been retained and provided as evidence against the officers involved. (Mike “Marine” Wilson – Facebook name and account)like a coward, chose to delete his comments once word had spread that formal complaints were being filed and an internal audit was being conducted.

Sadly, it’s the good officers and even the family members who feel the strain of other officer’s misconduct. Undoubtedly , these officers need to be disciplined for their misconduct and what should be deemed as a criminal act against a citizen. This is a form of harassment and even profiling. It is important that the public knows and is aware that when they visit the city of Indianapolis, these are the type of officers they may encounter. Never be afraid to report police misconduct. They need to be held accountable for their wrongful acts just like any other citizen would.

Chelsea Ducote’s complaint is based on the treatment she and two other activists involved with “Femen USA” were subjected to during a counter-protest of a San Francisco anti-abortion rally, as well as the false arrests and subsequent unfounded charges that they received afterwards. Femen is a group that is well known, especially in Europe, in recent years for organizing protests involving topless women, often concentrating on anti-religious and feminist issues.

The officers and civilians at the protest committed a Bane Act (Civ. Code, § 52.1) violation by interfering with our First Amendment right to Free Speech with threats, coercion, and intimidation. The officers refused to arrest the civilians that assaulted us. We were not told why were arrested or the nature of the charges against us until we were leaving the station approximately an hour and a half later.

As the speakers at Walk for Life spoke of “sacred femininity,” pro-life thugs dragged activist Anni Ma across the ground and another held Rebecca Marston in a choke-hold.

These men carried me over the barricade and towards Officer O’Conner, who immediately used a wrist lock pain compliance technique and barked, “Stop! Stop!” as we continued chanting. She forced me away from the sidewalk and into the street. I yelled out twice that she was hurting me and, after the second cry, she somewhat loosened her grip.

I sat down, and did not resist. However, Officer O’Conner continued to twist my arm and right wrist in a painful, unnatural direction. She and the other officer forced me to lie face-down on the ground as they handcuffed me and bent my legs back in a hog-tie fashion.

I do not understand why this use of force was implemented against me because our circumstances did not meet the requirements to justify the use of force, as listed in DGO 5.01 (F):

At no point in our interaction with officers were we resisting arrest.

We were non-violent.

We were not attacking anyone.

We were not breaking any laws.

We are being charged with misdemeanor park code 4.01(h) for exposing a portion of the “female breast at or below the areola” in a park, yet all of us were arrested on the sidewalk and in the street. As demonstrated from the three hundred photographs and three videos of our protest, none of our “female breasts” crossed into park boundaries. It is legal for both men and women to expose their areolas in San Francisco.

We are also charged with violating pc 415(3), disorderly conduct, for “using offensive words in a public place which are inherently likely to provoke an immediate violent reaction.” We do not fall under that description.

Why should the words “Fraud! Fake! Liar!” incite violence? The violence against us was unjustifiable.

We were exercising our First Amendment rights to Free Speech, and counter-protesting these pro-lifers who gathered to protest a woman’s right to body sovereignty and reproductive healthcare.

If anything, the civilians that assaulted us and the officers that arrested us are in violation of the Bane Act (Calif. Civil Code 52.1) for using violence, threats, coercion, and false imprisonment to interfere with our exercise of our First Amendment rights.

Despite Anni Ma repeatedly asking the officers why we were being arrested, we were given no reason; the officers only told us we were being detained. When Ma pressed to know what we were being charged with, all the officers said was, “We are trying to figure that out now,” “Why do you think you are being arrested?” and “You know why.”

It was not until approximately an hour and a half later at the station, when we were signing our citation slips and being released, that we find out why we had been arrested in the first place.

The officers also refused to arrest the men that assaulted us, despite the fact that we had photographs of them and told officers we’d like to press charges. The anti-abortion rally raged on, and our assailants were still directly upfront near the stage. In this regard, SFPD condoned the violence against women demonstrated and promoted at this rally.

My wrist was sprained for several weeks after our arrest, and I can submit medical bills and photos as evidence. I also had to take on less work because my job requires that I used my hands and wrists extensively all day.

However, there was a law on the books that stated speaking to police or the person they are potentially trying to kidnap constitutes impeding an investigation and therefore is a misdemeanor crime. Cops who are already not fans of being filmed and oftentimes looking for an excuse to harass or otherwise retaliate against people doing so, have been known to use this as a pretense to arrest Cop Blockers in the past.

The 5-2 decision comes off an appeal in the case of William Allen Scott, who was arrested in February 2014 in Carson City.

Scott was a passenger in a car that was pulled over after a sheriff’s deputy said it ran a stop sign, court records show. The deputy said he smelled alcohol and tried to administer a field sobriety test on the driver.

But Scott interrupted the deputy several times, telling his friend that he didn’t need to do what the deputy said. Scott was arrested, charged and eventually convicted of hindering a sheriff deputy’s duties for his outbursts.

The court said the law Scott was convicted of “criminalizes speech that is protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution,” according to court records.

In its decision, the court said the Carson City ordinance gave deputies too much discretion in enforcing the law. The opinion gave an extreme hypothetical example, saying the law allowed deputies who were directing traffic to arrest a pedestrian who simply asked them for directions.

It noted two state laws cover interfering with or resisting a public officer, but don’t allow for the same speech restriction.

Ban All The Music

Music festivals and concerts have always served as magnets, drawing in material from the far reaches of culture. Some gatherings, and their frequenting artists, are regarded as a kind of pilgrimage for bohemian pockets far and wide. Such outlier communities have always seen persecution by the authority, as exemplified by any number of episodes in America’s 1960’s. Perhaps it was this same oppressive, fear mongering spirit that possessed one Philadelphia city councilman to recently propose a blatantly unconstitutional bill. It’s mandate: to add concerts and performers to the police surveillance state’s lengthy target list.

It does more than just reflect a strange expansion of duties, it’s blatantly unconstitutional. The First Amendment protects free speech, expression, and peaceful assembly. Compiling that specific data is bad enough, but forcing venue owners to do it–while charging them more–and then banning the artists is another level. Not only does this bill discourage musicians from frequenting Pennsylvania, it restricts the native music scene. If there’s anyone who should be outraged it’s right-wingers who hoot and holler in favor of a “free”, aka deregulated, market. Additionally, passing such a law opens legal doors for the authority to more easily violate basic rights in the future.

Mark Squilla’s law enforcement database idea rings shades of CIA’s Operation: MH CHAOS in the 60’s. Under the espionage program, groups and/or individuals associated with the civil rights and anti-war movements were ruthlessly monitored. MH CHAOS also targeted music groups which were seen as figures of the counterculture. Jim Morrison, John Lennon, and Jimi Hendrix were all targets of this unethical crime against the state and it’s people. Of the three performers named one was assassinated, another possibly murdered, and one pursued by the FBI on trumped up felony charges until his death. The same crimes continue today, whether it’s the NSA tapping phones and emails or it’s the FBI flying spy planes over crowded cities. These groups have proven themselves untrustworthy, suspicious, and eager to monger their fears. Mark Squilla, and his bill, are no different from these entities or their programs. There’s no room in a free society for such an intolerant and undemocratic propositions as his.

They started out by admitting that we weren’t being detained (and therefore not suspected of a crime), but stated that they would like for us to leave. I politely told them (and wrote, as you can see to the left) that we would like for THEM to leave.

At that point, the sergeant (badge #5906) and several (but not all) of the other officers, did in fact leave. However, as they were (jay)walking away they indicated that they were going to go call some patrol officers because it’s illegal for us to chalk there, which is very much not true.

Shortly after, they returned and began making it very clear that they didn’t understand the First Amendment or that wacky Free Speech thing that it protects. The sergeant stated that he was concerned about the content of the messages we were writing. Then when questioned about what the 1st Amendment says and how that might apply to his concerns, he seemed to genuinely not know and kinda just repeated variations of his concern about what we were writing as if it was a mantra they taught him in the academy.

#BlueLiesMatter

He did briefly manage to expand on that once by stating that he was concerned the content of our First Amendment protected speech would incite people to violence against cops, in spite of the fact that nothing we wrote was violent or urging any sort of violence against anyone. It was merely an exercise of our Constitutionally protected right to Free Speech to protest police brutality and murders by cops.

Then everyone stood around for over half an hour while they tried to intimidate us and we waited for these patrol officers to show up and harass and/or threaten us. At one point, someone who appeared to be an off-duty cop drove up, parked facing the wrong direction, and had a little chat with them. Afterwards, he did an illegal U-turn and parked the wrong direction (this time also in a fire lane) on the other side of the road, so he could chat with another officer on that sidewalk.

Murder = Paid Vacation (For Cops)

I got kinda bored then, so I started asking some questions. For the record, I never did get an answer on whether there’s a basketball court upstairs in the jail. Nor did they give me a clear answer on whether they still use those old-timely jail house keys or if there’s any correlation between the shade of their uniforms and their rank. I’m still considering whether to file a FOIA request on those, but I probably won’t.

Then they apparently got word from the patrol officers that they were full of shit, we weren’t doing anything illegal, and nobody was going to waste their time coming down to tell them that. So they (jay)walked back over to the jail and went inside.

All in all, the eight or so cops (five jail guards, one officer who appeared to be with the gang unit, an undercover unit, one patrol unit that was parked around the corner, and a Nevada Highway Patrol unit that might have just been passing through) that wasted about an hour on something they should have known was legal in the first place, served as a great example why the LVMPD keeps claiming it needs to extort Las Vegas citizens for even more money to hire additional cops.

(Note: This video is pretty long, so I tried to shorten it as much as possible by literally cutting out any pauses. For the sake of accuracy and transparency, I’ve also embedded the full 36+ minute raw video below. So you can watch the full unedited version, if you are inclined to do so. Mostly what was cut out was about ten minutes of dead air when we were just waiting for the patrol officers they had called to show up.)